A Matter of Trust
by Dana Hale
Summary: Based on episode 6x06 Rush to Judgment. Chapter 1 is a missing scene- Eddie's interview at the DA's office. Chapter 2 is a rewrite/replacement of Jamie and Eddie's last scene in the episode. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

"Sorry I'm late," Eddie said nervously and out of breath as she took a seat opposite the two attorneys assigned to investigate Jamie. She hated having been called in as a witness, especially when she didn't really witness much that would help his case. She was struggling internally with how to have his back on this- she _really_ wanted to have his back, but this ugly mess that was boiling was getting out of hand and it wasn't looking good for Jamie, or any of the Reagans, for that matter.

"Officer Janko, I hope you understand the seriousness of this investigation," Counselor Lee started, her stern voice leaving no room for argument.

"Of course," was all Eddie could say in reply.

Counselor Lee continued. "We would like to remind you to answer all questions truthfully. If it is found to be otherwise, this Office will hold you in contempt for obstruction of justice."

"I understand."

"Good. Exactly where were you positioned when Officer Reagan threw the pedestrian off the bike?"

Eddie furrowed her brow in disgust. That just didn't even sound right that Jamie would ever do something like that. "You mean when Officer Reagan _allegedly_ threw the pedestrian off the bike?"

"We'll be the ones asking the questions, Officer Janko," piped up Counselor Simmons. He had a smirk on his face. "What exactly did you see regarding this incident?"

"The crowd was getting out of control. They were pushing into the street and I was in the front line with other officers trying to get them to back up onto the sidewalk. Then I heard the commotion behind me, and when I turned around, I saw the biker on the ground and Officer Reagan kneeling down trying to assess his injuries. I never saw what happened prior to that."

"And what was the reaction of the crowd? What were the people around him saying?" Lee asked.

Eddie squirmed in her chair and cleared her throat. "They were…" Eddie hesitated. She knew she had to tell the truth, but this was not going to help. "They were accusing him of police brutality. But knowing Jamie the way I do—"

"Yes, let's talk about how well you know Jamie," Lee interrupted. "You've been partnered with him for what, almost three years now?"

"That's correct."

"And at any time in those almost three years of your partnership, has Officer Reagan ever acted out unprofessionally in a violent manner?"

"Jamie has never had anything but the utmost respect for the shield he wears and has done an exemplary job in upholding his duty to serve and protect this City and all those in it, willingly ready to give his life if necessary. I have first-hand experience in witnessing his care for the people of New York. Just a few weeks ago, he talked Jenny, a mentally challenged teen, into dropping her knife and then held her in his arms while she cried. She could have killed him, but he bravely and calmly helped her through."

Counselor Lee had a smile on her face while she was digging through the file in front of her. She pulled the piece of paper out that she was looking for and held it up. "That's nice. But you didn't really answer the question. Think back, Officer Janko. What about this incident in which the two of you responded to a domestic dispute and Officer Reagan ended up punching the poor guy to the ground? Good thing your Sargent pulled up when he did or this guy would have ended up in the hospital."

Lee pushed the paper in front of Eddie for her to read. Eddie didn't need to read it. She knew that Jamie was just protecting her in that instance, but at the same time she knew the amount of force he used was a bit excessive. The two of them had never really talked about it further, but given the growing feelings and stronger bond that was shared between them lately, she understood why he reacted that way. She would do the same for him; she had admitted to Jamie that she would have shot Jenny if she would have tried anything with that knife against him.

"That _'poor'_ guy was pushing around his girlfriend and then he put his hands on me and pushed me to the ground," Eddie answered carefully, not wanting to give too much away.

"But just "pushing around" doesn't sound to me like it warranted several punches to the guy's face and ribs and wrestling him to the ground to get him back under control," Simmons added. "In your opinion, don't you think Officer Reagan's actions were excessive?"

"Jamie was just protecting both me and the girlfriend. It was clear that the guy was not going to stop anytime soon. Look, the guy didn't even press charges, and the matter was cleared with no reprimand on Officer Reagan's part."

"But your Sargent regarded it as a serious enough incident that he noted it on Officer Reagan's permanent record," Lee reminded her.

Eddie sighed and pushed the paper back at Lee. It was clear to her that their minds were already made up about Jamie, and nothing she could say was going to change that. "Are we done here?"

Lee and Simmons shared a look and nodded.

"You're dismissed, Officer Janko."


	2. Chapter 2

_**AN: This scene takes place a day after the bar scene. It's meant to be their last scene in the episode, replacing the scene in which Jamie was allowed back to work and said "I already have a partner I can trust." I felt that scene was too quick in wrapping things up and Jamie should have been the one apologizing, not Eddie. I also think we needed a little bit more explanation as to why Jamie was acting a bit out of character (I played with some ideas that were rolled around thanks to some further discussions with some of you who reviewed me). And for this chapter I'm ignoring the fact that he wants to take the Sgt's Exam because that just throws in a bunch more questions about their partnership, doesn't it?**_

Eddie rolled over in her sleep, somewhat conscious of the muffled yet persistent knocking sound coming from somewhere. A few more knocks and Eddie became more awake as she realized that the sound was actually coming from her front door. She groaned, rubbing her hands over her face and then looked over at her clock. It was almost 2 am. Groggily, she moved the warm covers off her body and swung her legs over to the side of the bed to stand, and then haphazardly fumbled through her bedroom door and into the living room with eyes still half shut.

"Mrs. Carmichael," she called out in a tired voice on her way to the front door. "For the last time…we talked about this…no I am not letting you borrow my gun so you can shoot your neighbor's cat while it's in heat. Cats need to have some fun too you know…"

Eddie stood on tip toes to look through the peep hole to confirm that it was Mrs. Carmichael yet again, bugging her for the third time this week. But to her surprise, there stood Jamie looking rather amused.

"Jamie?" she blinked at the hallway light that hit her eyeballs as she opened the door.

"Cats need to have some fun too?" he laughed at her reasoning.

Eddie frowned. "The next time I move, I'm not telling ANY of my neighbors that I'm a cop."

Jamie nodded with a smile on his face which slowly faded. "I learned that lesson a long time ago. I'm sorry to wake you," he said, taking in her appearance. Her face was naturally beautiful with her makeup off, and she looked absolutely adorable to him in her pajamas with her half-asleep look. She was dressed in yoga pants and a rumpled spaghetti-strapped tank top.

"Why are you here?" she asked, suddenly annoyed, remembering that she was mad at him for how he had treated her at the bar. She hadn't seen or talked to him since.

Jamie suddenly looked like a groveling puppy dog. "I didn't like how we left things at the bar…I wanted to talk to you before we go on duty together tomorrow…well, I mean today… in a few hours," he replied, looking at his watch. "Can I come in?"

Eddie sighed but wordlessly opened the door further to let him in. She headed for the kitchen, grabbed a glass out of the cupboard, and poured herself a glass of milk from the fridge. "Want anything?" she asked, even though she knew his answer would be no.

"No, I won't stay long…"

Eddie stared at him while she drank her milk. He just stood there with his hands in his jean pockets staring quietly back at her.

"So my case was dismissed," he finally spoke. "Danny raided Potter's office and found a video that had the right angle."

"I know, I heard. Figured that's why we're assigned to be together today."

He nodded and was silent.

"I'm glad," Eddie continued. "I'm glad you're cleared, because I just-"

"I'm sorry I didn't trust you, Eddie," he interrupted her. "I didn't mean to accuse you of throwing me under the bus."

Eddie set down her empty glass on the counter. "So then why did you?" she asked quietly, looking hurt.

Jamie couldn't stand to see her look at him like that. He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know…I guess I just felt…," he stopped, trying to find the right word. "…frustrated? Alone? They were out for my blood. I couldn't use my hook, and no one else could vouch for me. At least not from the pool of people they interviewed."

"But I _did_. I _did_ vouch for you as best as I could. You didn't even let me explain how my interview went. Those lawyers were sleazy."

"I know they were. I figured that out. I let them get to me. The way they put things they made it sound like you were against me and I guess I just fell for it."

"But that's what I don't get, Jamie. Why would you even for one minute think that I would betray you? I know I said that I had to look out for myself, but I just meant that I wasn't going to lie and make something up that I didn't see. I didn't want to get myself jammed up by being caught in a lie. But I did stick up for you and your character from what I know of you. And what I know of you is that you would _never_ do what they claimed you did. And THEY brought up the domestic dispute case, not me. Why can't you just trust me? And this isn't the first time you've not trusted me Jamie, and it hurts. What have I ever done to you that makes you not want to trust me?"

"Nothing. You've been the perfect partner," he replied without hesitation. He closed the gap between them and reached out to take hold of her hands. "I'm really sorry, Eddie. Our partnership and your friendship mean the world to me, and I guess I've just been bracing myself for the other shoe to drop."

"What do you mean?"

"The people closest to me in my life tend to disappear. The doctors said my mom was going to live; she didn't. My brother was killed. Sydney wore my ring and I thought we were going to grow old together; then she left. Vinny got shot and died in my arms. And now you're the best thing that has come into my life since all of that, and I just…"

"Jamie, I'm not going anywhere," she said with conviction, squeezing his hands. He had said that same thing to her not too long ago, and she wanted him to know that it was true for her as well.

He looked into her eyes and knew she meant it. Pulling her into a hug, he kissed the top of her head and they held each other in silence for a moment. Jamie finally released her when it got to be too difficult for him to keep his deeper feelings for her in check.

"I better be going. We both need some sleep before heading out to do crowd control again."

"Yeah," Eddie agreed.

"So we're good?" he asked as he was leaving but turned back to look at her.

Eddie gave him a warm smile that melted his heart. "Yeah. We're good."


End file.
